Danger Comes In All Sizes
by Freckle Red
Summary: A person from Mozzies past is in danger and he enlist's help from Neal and reluctantly The suit. But all doesn't go as planned.
1. Chapter 1

Lilly had just arrived at the loft, Mozzie's latest residence. She pulled into the garage and was just hopping from her Blue Ninja motorcycle when her cellphone chirped, alerting her of a newly received text message.

"What in the world?" she muttered, her brow furrowed. It was from Mozzie, he had used the code, asking how Atticus—her favorite character from To Kill a Mockingbird—was. The message contained an address and, upon seeing 911, Lilly knew it was urgent. "You could have sent it earlier, Mozzie." Lilly said to her phone, as if it could hear her or talk back.

With an annoyed sigh, Lilly pulled her red hair in a ponytail, deciding to forgo the helmet because the damn thing made her head hurt.

Moments later she was back on her bike, weaving around cars and driving with her usual reckless ease. Her thoughts drift back to the first time she had met the strange man who had, much to her surprise, become her friend.

Four Years Ago

Thirteen-year-old Lilly often visited the less-than-pristine parts of town; it was hardy for enjoyment. It was all about money. A girl had to eat, after all. After three hours in a dimly lit smoke filled pool hall, she slipped out the back exit. Once out of the site of the two men she had just hustled, she allowed a satisfied smile to show. It's never a good idea to agitate the marks, and grinning was a definite no-no. Being observed leaving with large amounts of money was just asking to be robbed. Of course, it was especially dangerous for her. She was a young girl, an easy target for grown men. Using a trip to the ladies room as an excuse, she had quickly picked the lock on the back exit door, a crime perhaps but she wasn't to blame. After all Lilly, wasn't even old enough to be in there, so the real criminal was the bouncer at the door.

Soundlessly, she stepped out the door and into the alley that ran behind the bar. She was not alone, as she noticed right away, and she quickly slipped beside the nearby dumpster, unseen. Making no noise, she listened to the conversation taking place and snuck a glance from behind the dumpster.

"You really thought you could leave before the job was finished?" the larger man whose back was to Lilly said. He was brandishing a gun in his left hand as he advanced closer to the other man. She had a clear view of the other man. He was short, bald, and wore a very ugly pair of glasses. She immediately felt sorry for him. She knew what it was like to have bigger people mess with. Not to mention the fact that the he was, rather unfairly, unarmed.

"I made it very clear that I would bail at the sign of any violence. That's not part of my job description." The bald smaller man replied somewhat nervous.

Did this little man not realize the danger he was in? Lilly wondered. A harsh laugh from the gun-wielding jackass made it all too clear to Lilly that if she didn't help right away the other guy would soon be dead.

Moving from behind the dumpster, thankful she had decided on her purple sneakers today instead of her usual steel toed boots,

Lilly quietly advanced on the man. Kojak was smart enough to not acknowledge her presence much to her relief. When she was within a foot of him she smelt his cologne and wrinkled her nose. She had no plan when she approached. Improvising, she reached out and snatched the gun from the foul man's hand.

"RUN!" Lilly yelled at the other man, as she took her own advice. Lilly couldn't believe that had worked. The gun owner's immediate chase was enough incentive to get the other man pounding the pavement as well. He wasn't fast enough, apparently not used to having to flee on foot, and a loud grunt from behind her made Lilly stop in her tracks and whirl around. Did the moron not know she had a gun for goodness sake?

The furious and out of breath man who smelled like a French whore had caught the be-speckled man and was now kicking him.

"STOP!" Lilly screamed as he connected another kick to the figure on the ground. Pausing, he looked at her, taking in her freckles, red hair in a sloppy ponytail, and brightly colored clothes. His gaze finally rested on the gun she had stolen right out of his hand.

"Hand me the gun and walk away, and I won't kill you, kid," He spoke to her like she was a child.

Flashing a bright grin at him she shook her head saying. "How about you walk away now or be carried away in an ambulance?" She couldn't suppress a giggle at the look of rage on his face.

She adresses the beate man on the ground. "Hey Kojak, get up and come over here." She kept her eyes on the larger man, and her smile in place as the smaller man stood and made his way to her side.

"Let's just go!' the still out of breath man said. Lilly stood her ground, an amused expression on her face. "Marcus, don't!" her new friend continued, much to her confusion. It seemed Marcus was advancing towards her.

"You're not gonna shoot me, little girl. Bet you haven't ever shot anyone!" Marcus says as he continued closer and an unpleasant glare appeared on Lilly's expressive face.

"Well I haven't shot anyone today. But it's still early." Her voice chirped up quickly as she continued. "Take one more step, and we can test your theory." As she expected, the man she now knew as Marcus continued to advance.

"Don't!" she heard from her apparently ungrateful-to-be-saved victim.

"How about I find your parents and tell them what you've been up to today?" Marcus suggested.

Laughing, Lilly replied with a convincing lie. "You would never find their graves. I didn't exactly mark them." She shook her head slightly at the gasp from behind her.

Growing tired of this whole conversation, she shot the advancing Marcus in the knee, her eyes wide at the blood and the cry of anguish. "Hm. I reckon he'll listen next time." She tucked his gun in the back of her pants and tilted her head at the surprised man behind her. "Well we better split. Come on." She grabbed his hand and pulled him away. "I'm Lilly, by the way."

After a long moment, as they hurried away before the gunshot was investigated, she wasn't sure he was going to answer her. Finally, she heard him murmur softly, "Mozzie"


	2. Chapter 2

Lilly found the address rather easily. She, once again, dismounted her bike and parked it against the sidewalk.  
>The house, or rather mansion, was certainly one of the better places she had seen in a while, she thought, studying the numerous entrances and exits she could see from the front.<p>There was no need to dawdle out there. Mozzie clearly said it was urgent. She skipped up the front steps and rang the doorbell, waited only a moment, and then impatiently rang it three more times. The door opened quickly after that, and Lilly flashed a bright smile at the honest-to-god maid, who stood before her wearing a uniform and everything.<p>

"Neat outfit!" she said by way of greeting. The woman didn't return her smile, and Lilly's wilted, immediately replaced by a scowl.

"I'm here to see Mozzie, where's he at?" she asked rather rudely and poked her head in the door, trying to spy her friend.  
>The lady led her to a staircase and indicated that she was to go to the apartment at the top of the stairs. Bounding up the stairs two at a time, she became even more curious about what he could possibly want from her here...a con maybe?<p>

A man dressed like an insurance salesman was, to her surprise, knocking on the door she was headed towards.

"Neal!" the grouchy looking man called out after he knocked, only noticing a second later he was being scrutinized by a new arrival.

Agent Peter Burke turned, slightly startled to be under such an intense gaze. He found himself facing a girl, a teenager with a mass of red hair, sticking up oddly. His gaze took in her jeans, artfully torn in several places, her orange hoodie, and, finally, her bright orange boots. Not knowing exactly what to say, he simply nodded at her.

"Where's Mozzie?" Lilly blurted out. Then, when she didn't receive an answer, she stepped around the scowling man and opened the door. She strolled casually inside. Peter followed her inside, at a loss for words. He watched her stomp around the apartment in search of Mozzie.

Finally recovering his voice, he closed the door behind him and spoke to the animated girl. "Who are you, and how do you know Mozzie?"

"I'm Jane. Mozzie is my pimp," she lied with a straight face, managing to give the nosy man a scowling look. His expression changed from shock to anger in the space of two seconds. He took a step forward, but Lilly didn't budge. She had learned long ago that to retreat even a step was a sign of fear.

The sound of footsteps and a muted conversation drew their attention to the door as the it swung open and another stranger entered, followed by Mozzie.

"Sorry, Peter. June needed help moving something," the man Lilly surmised to be the infamous Neal said before noticing the tense mood in the room and his other guest.

"Mozzie!" Lilly rushed towards him, worried by the unrecognizable expression on his face.

Peter caught her by her left arm and whirled around to stare daggers at Mozzie. He didn't for a second believe he was the kind of man to be involved with the things he had just heard. Granted, Mozzie was by all means strange, no argument there. Peter still had ahold of the girls arm, and, oddly enough, she seemed to have stilled in to a dangerous calm.

"Mozzie, Jane here says you are her pimp. Is that true?" One look at the sheer panic on Mozzie's pale face, was answer enough of an answer to confirm Peter's gut feeling. He saw the confusion at the name he had just used for her.

A peal of giggles erupted from Lilly. She couldn't help it. Mozzie looked faint. A glare from all three men shut her up.  
>Noticing she was still restrained, Lilly looked down at her pinned arm and then up at Peter.<p>

"Take your hands off me right now!" she said, making eye contact with him. He was not ready when she jerked her arm from him. He fell for one of the oldest cons. There was a reason why she had left her arm limp, making him think she wasn't going to resist.

Neal had been watching his partner in amusement as the kid moved out of the reach of the agent, making it very clear with her eyes that she wanted to do him some bodily harm.

"Peter, Mozzie asked us all to meet here to discuss something about a friend of his who needs our help." He flashed Peter one of his Caffrey, disarming smiles. "He was very vague about it." Tilting his head towards his friend.

"Looks like we have just met the friend. I'm Neal." He used his charming smile once again for Lilly's benefit. She certainly couldn't say Neal wasn't handsome, but, to put it mildly, his smile annoyed her. It was a fake one that she had used herself. He was a conman.

Totally ignoring Neal, she shot her stink eye glare at Mozzie. Now she knew what the look from earlier meant: guilt. Rage consumed her.

"What the hell is he talking about, Mozzie?"

Mozzie, her one true friend, couldn't have betrayed her, could he?

"Answer me..." her voice cracked, but she'd be damned if she would let hurt overcome her, so she opted with anger. When he remained silent, she lost her famous temper, picked up a glass of wine from the table, and hurled it at him. She spun on her heels towards the door only to have it blocked by the blue-eyed Neal. In the back of her mind, she wondered, in horror, how much Judas had told these two men.

"Move!" she spat at Neal. When he did not comply, she stomped his foot, shoving him to the side. She was rewarded with a yelp of pain from the man, and she reached for the doorknob. Apparently, not fast enough. She soon found herself scooped up off the ground and restrained by the man she was now certain was a cop of some kind.

"Stop it right now!" He addressed his captive in a loud growl. "Can you tell me what the hell is going on, Mozzie?"

Once again, she went still, but, of course, Peter was not so easily deceived this time. He lowered her to her feet, but kept a firm grip on her.

"Look, Suit," the visibly upset Mozzie said, not even bothering to wipe the wine off himself. He seemed to regret what he had done but not enough to not go through with it. "She is in danger a lot of danger. Because of me it's Keller" Seemingly relieved to have actually gotten the words out, he turned away and grabbed some paper towels, making a show of cleaning himself up.

The very word Keller sent chills through Peter Burke. His wife had been kidnapped by that ruthless killer, and now that the man had escaped from prison, Elizabeth had a full protective detail at their home. The entire FBI was looking for him. He only hoped they would catch him sooner than later.

The girl finally broke the silence. "Listen if you don't mind, you're hurting my arm and I bruise easily. You wanna let go of me?" Sarcasm dripped from her words.

Peter led her to the couch and let her go with a bark. "Sit!"

Meanwhile, Neal, still feeling the pain in his foot, glared at "Mozzie's friend." She, in turn, flashed a bright, toothy grin his way. It was unsettling to him how much it looked like one of his.

Peter sat on the coffee table directly in front of her, leaning forward and invading her personal space. He hid his surprise when, instead of becoming uneasy, she leaned forward, invading his as well. This wasn't going to be as easy as he had thought it would be.

"Tell me what you know about Keller," he growled in his typical, stern, Agent Burke way.

"Keller who?" she replied, eyes wide and innocent with a slight amused twinkle in them.

"Red," Mozzie said, suddenly recovered enough to face his young friend. "He can help you."

Her tension was now visible. She was usually so controlled, but the very sound of Mozzie's voice set her on edge. Lilly kept her seat, just barely, and eyed the man she had always thought of as her best friend as he approached. Mozzie had used her nickname a big no-no and was coming to join her on the couch. Neal watched, concerned for his friend's safety and intrigued at "Red." She was young, but he was impressed at her lack of response to Peter's interrogation tactics.

A slightly annoyed sigh escaped the kid before she finally spoke, addressing Mozzie first with a warning. "Don't even think about getting any closer to me Maxwell Thorn." She dropped one of his aliases. Turn about was fair play.  
>Two audible gasps from both conmen let her know that her threat to Mozzie had hit home.<p>

"Now, Agent Peter Burke." Lilly smirked at the suprise on his face as she opened his wallet and studied his picture and credentials. She tossed it back to him before he was overcome in shock. "Wanna tell me, in legal terms, why you assaulted me and tried to hold me here against my will?"

Once again, she had shocked him into silence for a moment."If you know the whereabouts of an escaped felon, it's called aiding and abetting. That is a serious crime. You will go to jail." He felt his temper rising and reined it in the best he could.

"I do not know that person, so how could I tell you where he is? This conversation is over, Suit." She raised an eyebrow and made motions to rise, forcing Peter to back up or risk being bumped into. Without a look back, she walked to the door and paused, hesitant to leave with tension between her and Mozzie, even if he had turned snitch on her.

"These are not our kind of people, Mozs. You taught me that yourself. Anyone sees you consorting with Suits and snitches " She shook her head. "It wouldn't be good." She closed the door softly behind her and headed back to her bike.  
> <p>


	3. Chapter 3

Peter ran a hand over his face and let out a loud breath. Hands on his hips, he began to pace around the apartment too angry to speak. He stopped suddenly and the two men watched him make a quick call on his cell.

"Diana, a girl just walked out of Neal's apartment. She should be coming out any second." He was silent while Diana spoke.

"She has red hair and looks to be in her teens." Peter looked Mozzie's way and addressed him.

"How old is she?" Peter's lips formed a thin line into a scowl when he didn't get an answer.

"Ok. OK, Suit, she's twenty-three." Mozzie was lying and, while he could never fool Neal, he hadn't fooled Peter this time either.

With a stern glare, Peter finshed his conversation. "I don't know what's going on but follow her. Take two of our protection detail agents with you. Tell Jones to stay where he is with his men outside." He hung up and pointed to the two men towards the couch.

"SIT!" Agent Burke didn't have to wait long before both men hurried over to do as he ordered.

Neal had no idea what was going on but decided to run interference for his friend.

"Peter " He was silenced by a wave of Peter's hand. He opened his mouth to try again but was cut off with "Shut up, Caffery."

Outside the sound of a motorcycle reving it's engine and the squeal of tires drowned out any conversation for a few seconds.

Finally Mozzie spoke "That was her."

"She rides a motorcycle?" Peter asked surprised. The suprise also showed on his blue-eyed partner. Mozzie nodded, looking miserable, as if he had done some horrible deed and the guilt was written clearly on his face.

"TALK! You brought us here and you're wasting our time. I take it Neal has no idea what is going on either." Peter gazed at Neal, and he nodded in agreement.

"Listen, Suit. If it was anyone else but her, I would never have called you. This goes against everything I stand for. It isn't easy to betray a friend's trust." Mozzie said with a look of defiance directed at Peter.

"Cut the criminal ethics crap and start talking, NOW!" A vein was throbbing on the agent's head, and he looked ready to lose the last thread of his temper.

Neal had seen that first hand and didn't relish the thought of seeing it more than once. "Moz, is that the kid you told me about? The one who saved your life?" Neal decided to try to get the conversation moving before Peter strangled his friend.

"Yes." Moz said softly, not meeting anyone's eyes. He wasn't a violent man. He had that in common with Neal among other things.

Seeing that his friend wasn't going to say more about it, Neal filled Peter in on what happened when Mozzie was "allegedly" involved in a buisness venture that went bad, and Mozzie decided to split.

"He doesn't do violence. Like me." Neal smiled a charming smile at Peter but only got a glare.

"Neal! Just tell me already," Peter said in annoyance. He also noticed Mozzie was shaking his head ever so slightly: a silent plea for Neal to shut up.

"Four years ago, Mozzie was almost killed in an alley and.."

"Neal NO!" Mozzie shouted. Peter knew the little guy was strange, but he had never seen him like this. Agent Burke knew it had taken a lot to get him to ask an fed for help. He was the most paranoid person Peter had ever come across, so deep down he knew Mozzie wanted the story told.

"As I was saying," Neal continued but looked very worried at his friend. "A kid slipped from behind a dumpster and actually stole the gun from the man's hand. He chased them and Moz fell behind. She came back held the gun on the man, and demanded he stop kicking Moz. But he wasn't concerned. Afterall, she was just thirteen."

Mozzie gasped "NEAL! SHUT UP!" The little guy at that moment seemed mad enough to actually get violent. Peter was confused by what caused that reaction.

Agent Burke let what he heard sink in. If she was thirteen four years ago, that meant she was still a kid! Now he understood and was immediately furious. It took all the restraint he had to remain silent, so he could hear the rest.

Neal finished the story, well all that he knew about it anyway. Moz is a very secretive man. "She allegedly shot him." He had said it so matter of factly, it caused Peter's temper to erupt.

"That girl KILLED SOMEONE?" Peter bellowed, hardly believing it possible and also angry that Mozzie let a child do such a thing. "You, let a kid shoot someone, for you? A little girl!"

"No no no no! Red allegedly shot him in the knee." Mozzie was quick to clarify feeling a bit of shame and also fear of the Suit.

"Oh well that makes it ok, she only shot a man. She didn't kill him!" He was shouting now pointing his finger at the man. "You made a child into a criminal!'

Neal knew that it hadn't happened that way. Moz would never involve anyone in violence, especially not a kid. His friend looked deeply miserable. He had to say something, or Moz would shut down.

"Did you know she was gonna shoot him? Could you have stopped it? Did you even know her, Moz?" he asked his friend in a calm voice.

Moz responded softly to Neal, ignoring Peter's glare. "She was just there, came out of nowhere. She snatched his gun and yelled for me to run...I wasn't fast enough."

"Suit, I have never had anyone, aside from Neal, who was as you know at supermax, do anything to help me without a reason." He looked desperately at Peter trying to get him to understand. "She came back for me. She didn't know me, but she came back." He again looked down at his hands.

Neal understood and wanted to comfort his friend, but Moz didn't like to be touched. He did the next best thing.

"She cared about what would happen to you. She thought you were worth saving."

The little guy nodded. "She was fearless. She held the gun on him and ordered me up behind her, but...but.. Marcus started towards her anyway. I yelled at her not to, but she shot him to save me." With a shake of his head he added "She knew how to use a gun already. It wasn't a misfire. She aimed for his knee."

A short silence filled the apartment.

"Now, it's my turn to save her," Mozzie stated with determination. "Help her, Peter. Please!"

"How?" Peter asked simply.

"Now that Keller is out. She's looking for him. Remember the price that was 'allegedly' put on his head? She found out and contacted me, but she didn't want the money."

Moz suddenly found his shoes interesting and stopped talking.

Now Peter understood. "She offered to do it for you, for free to protect you." He shook his head sadly at the misguided Red.

"So now that he is out, she is determined to get him, so I wont be a target anymore...allegedly," he was quick to add. "She has never killed anyone before. I would tell you to trust me, but after the treasure that would be a waste of words." Peter saw honesty in his eyes but didn't say anything.

Sighing from the burden of the situation, Mozzie had one more bomb shell to drop. "Word on the street is there's a paid hitman gunning for Keller, named Red.

Neal and Peter both wore alarmed looks on their faces. "Does he know her?" Neal interjected. Almost as if he read Peter's mind.

With a shake of his head, Mozzie took a ragged breath. "He belives it's a man. Red is offended, calling him gender biased. It's only a matter of time before someone figures it out."

He began to cean his glasses on his shirt to have something to do with his hands. There was more, and he knew if he said what he needed to, chances were, she would go ghost on him.

Perched on the sofa arm the agent and his best friend waited him out.

Head lowered, he mumbled more to the floor than to them. "She know's one of his business partners, a real shady killer."

"She has conned her way to get close to him, pretending to be his daughter's friend. She met the man's daughter at the park, and now Red is having a sleepover there to search for any clue to where Keller is and bug his house. Red is an excellent hacker as well. He catches her, she's dead." He hung his head in worry.

Just then Peter got a call and they listended to his side. " What? Which Hospital?...We are on our way. And no, don't let her fill out any paper work. Keep her there. Does she have any id on her?...Good flash your badge tell them her father is on the way, you fill out the forms. Keep an Agent with her at all times. I'll be there shortly." Agent Burke listened for a few more seconds and then replied. "I'll worry about that. Just put whatever down as her information. I'll clear it with Hughes." He hung up and thrust his cell in his pocket.

He looked at the concern in the two men, though Neal was better at hiding his. Peter again ran a hand across his face in annoyance.

"Seems your friend tried to ditch her tail and had an accident." He held up both hands to stop the volley of concerned questions . "Diana said it didn't seem serious, but the kid is being a pain." They all could imagine that from the few minutes she had graced them with her presence.

He stalked out the door with Neal and Mozzie on his heels. He made a call to Huges on the way to the hospital, and they arrived twenty minutes later.

They didn't speak on the ride over and quickly made their way inside and to the desk.

"PETER!" The agent and his two compainions turned, shocked to hear Elizabeth Burke's voice, as she came running in to her husbands arms.

"Wh-what are you doing here, El?" he gasped out, caught up in a tight, tearful hug from his distraught wife.

When she had calmed down enough to talk, she explained that the hospital called saying there had been an accident, and for her to come right away. "They wouldn't tell me anything on the phone. What's this about?"

Speaking with the desk nurse, he caught sight of Diana coming from the ER Entrance. She arrived just as the nurse flipped through the paper work and informed them, his daughter had been in an motorcycle accident.

"What?" Both he and El spoke at the same time. Pulling the small group to the side, Diana spoke in a hushed tone, looking uncomfortable.

"I talked with Hughes. The hospital was going to let her sign herself out, unless we could find a way to keep her here until you arrived. So I had to put you down as her parent. I'm sorry Peter they must have gotten it mixed up and called El's cell instead of yours." She was sorry but not sorry to be rid of the rude kid in the back who continued to spout laws about kidnapping and wrongful imprisoment. She had even told the doctors that Diana was a stalker. Now that Peter had been told everything that transpired and El understood the situation, they were back at the desk and were directed to exam room three.

"Only Immediate family are allowed back there," the nurse said to the group and, reluctantly Mozzie and Neal had to stay in the waiting room.

Peter could hear the kid, whom he now knew's name was Lilly. He had extracted that from Moz on the way there.

"Look, the very next person who lays one finger on me will be named in my lawsuit against this pitiful example of a hospital, and since that would be assault, I will be completely in my rights to give them a blackeye. Anybody wanna try me?" Lilly said in a low menacing voice.

Peter could not believe the gall of this kid and stepped swiftly through the curtain, El at his heels, her eyes wide. "THAT'S QUITE ENOUGH YOUNG LADY!" he shouted.

Lilly was sitting on the exam table, swinging her legs. She jumped a little at the sight of him and his shouting but recovered quickly, raising a brow. She had a bandage on her right arm and several cuts on her other one as well as a bandage on her forehead.

The two nurses and the doctor gave a collected sigh of relief. "Look. Your parents are here. I'm Dr. Barnes. We need to stich her head and x-ray her for broken ribs. Maybe you can help." He shook hands with the Burkes.

"Lilly Burke, lose the attitude and apoligize NOW!"

Boy. Big mouth Mozzie had done it now: told her real first name. It must have been him. He was the only one she had ever told, except for one other person and, since he was dead, it couldn't have been him. Lilly began to run through plans for Mozzies demise...of course she wouldn't ever do it. It was fun just the same to fantasize about it.

She had tuned out the shouting idiot but was jerked out of her thoughts as he grabbed her chin forcing her to look at him. "I said NOW!"

Peter couldn't believe this kid. He wondered if it would be justified homicide if he strangled her. The next words from her mouth caused his observant wife to put a restraining hand on his arm.

"Who the Hell are you?" she asked Peter, a smug smile on her face. She looked to the doctor and nurses. "I don't know them." She indicated the agent and the dark haired woman with him. Her eyes were wide and innocent while facing the others in the room. After all she was performing for them.


	4. Chapter 4

Studying the reactions of the nurses and doctor, Lilly could tell they were skeptical. With a twinge of regret, she wished briefly that she'd been a tad bit nicer to them earlier. Maybe then they would have been agreeable and on her side. Oh well, what was done was done. On to plan B.

Sighing wearily, she addressed the medical personnel. "Can you give me and Dad a minute alone please?" Much to Lilly's dismay, the personnel practically fled the room without another word.

"Rude," she muttered.

El, standing beside Peter, actually smiled when the others all but ran from the room. This kid was really something, not to mention adorable. Bandaged head, smart mouth, and all. "Head bothering you too badly, hun?" She asked, moving closer to Lilly and peering at her cuts closely. She was well aware of the kid's discomfort, but she couldn't care less.

Lilly, moving away from the lady who had gotten way too close for comfort, frowned and asked, "Who are you? Another FBI Agent?" She was answered with only laughter from the pretty brunette.

"No, this my wife Elizabeth," Peter spoke up with a smile on his face. He was obviously proud of his wife. Strangely enough, the kid returned his smile with a silly grin, giving him what he suspected to be the first glimpse of the real her. What brought that on? He hadn't the faintest. Maybe time would tell.

Lilly was a sucker for romance, and she always got a warm fuzzy feeling when she saw couples in love. Not to mention Elizabeth had such an honest smile that Lilly took a liking to her instantly. Not for the first time, she wondered what it would have been like to have a mother, especially one with the musical laughter of Mrs. Burke.

"Nice to meetcha, Elizabeth. I'm Red." Lilly smiled sweetly at the woman and stuck her hand out for a shake. As Elizabeth accepted, Lilly looked around her and faced Peter smugly. "Now that's how you make friends, Suit. Not by manhandling or accusing them of stuff."

When Elizabeth began checking Lilly's injuries once again, reaching up to touch the bandage on her forehead, the young woman finally had enough and smacked El's hand away gently. "Hey cut it out! I said we're friends, and friends don't mess with bandages."

"Look, Agent Burke, I honestly have no idea where Keller is. And even if I did, I wouldn't help him!" A scowl returned to her face with the final sentence. How dare he accuse her of harboring a killer? Hearing Elizabeth gasp at what she heard, Lilly looked at her with confusion. "What's wrong?"

Peter stepped forward to stand beside his wife, noting once again that the kid suddenly had that silly smile on her face. He wanted to not like the young woman, but the headache and problems aside, he could see why Mozzie had taken a shine to her. Also, why he was so very worried too.

"Lilly…" he started, only to be cut off and corrected by the kid.

"Red. Call me Red."

Taking a deep breath, he shook his head, annoyed all over again at her poor manners.

"Okay, fine. Red... Keller is dangerous. He kidnapped Elizabeth, so she knows first hand what I am talking about." Peter paused, staring wordlessly to allow a moment for that information to sink in before finally continuing. "He also tried to kill me and Neal. This is not someone you want to tangle with. You're just a kid, but he doesn't hesitate or show anyone favoritism or lenience when it comes to murder."

All of this had exactly the wrong effect on Lilly. Her mouth agape, she looked at Elizabeth with alarm, then back at Peter. "How come he is alive then?" She asked seriously.

"What do you mean?" came Elizabeth's startled question before Peter could answer.

Ignoring Elizabeth all together, Lilly stared at Peter, saying accusingly, "How could you let someone kidnap your wife and not kill him? That's the craziest thing I have ever heard!" Hopping from the exam table with a wince, she seemed even shorter on her smurf socked feet as she stalked to the Agent to continue her rant. "You have a gun, right there." She pointed to his holstered weapon. "How come you didn't kill him?" She put both hands on her hips and glared at him defiantly.

"It's my duty to uphold the law and put criminals in prison, not kill them." Peter felt ridiculous explaining himself to this kid, and when she snorted rudely at him, he wanted nothing more than to reach out and shake some sense into her.

"You can't just go around killing people. That's not the way it works," he snapped in response.

"Oh yeah. Unless, of course, you're Keller," Lilly refuted sarcastically, casting him an ugly look.

The conversation would have gone further downhill had El not interrupted. Always the voice of reason, she said quietly, "I don't want Peter to ever kill anyone, sweetie." Smiling at her husband in attempt to diffuse his anger at Lilly. There was no reason to mention that he had killed in the line of duty, it wouldn't be helpful in this conversation.

"Want and need are two completely different things, Elizabeth," Lilly said wisely. Naturally, Lilly thought herself to be right at all times. "Shame on you for not shooting him when you had the chance." She wagged her finger at the agent. "That's your wife! Now she is in danger all over again, and whose fault is it? That's right…all yours."

Peter, having more than enough of this kid's attitude, swept her off her feet and dumped her unceremoniously on the exam table.

"That's enough!" He loomed over her, anger coming off of him in waves. How dare she talk to him that way?

"Mozzie has told me ," he repeated slowly. "And there's absolutely no chance in hell of you playing your little assassin game with Keller. So let me make myself very clear. This. Stops. Now," he finished, using his no-nonsense tone of voice.

Lilly didn't say anything for a full minute as she studied his expression, obviously not liking what she was seeing.

Lilly saw that she was getting nowhere with this conversation, while her feelings on the matter hadn't changed at all. She really kind of liked Elizabeth, she had to admit, even Agent Burke a little bit.

It was even more important to get Keller now. Not only was there Mozzie to worry about, now there was Elizabeth as well as Neal and Agent Burke. If Peter wasn't willing to take Keller out, then he needed Lilly's help to.

She convinced herself she was doing the right thing. Not crazy enough to believe she could beat up Agent Burke, Lilly pushed her guilty feelings aside and went for the con. She even convinced herself that it wasn't wrong to lift his weapon. It wasn't like he was going to use it for anything useful.

"You know... you're right Agent Burke, I was just worried about Mozzie is all...please don't let anything happen to him." She began to sniffle and rub her head looking miserable. "My head hurts, Elizabeth." She casted a pitiful look at El, tears filling her eyes. "Think I can see Mozzie? Please."

Peter, instantly uncomfortable, was relieved when his wonderful wife wrapped the crying kid in a hug, then looks back over her shoulder at Peter. "Can you go get Mozzie, hun? I'll stay with Red."

Back in the waiting room, Neal and Mozzie are having a discussion about hospital chairs. Neal had been, with no success, trying to get Mozzie to sit down.

"Those chairs are germ ridden, Neal. I can practically see the staph infection just waiting for me to sit down. Besides, the chairs are made to damage your spine if you sit for longer than a moment."

"Moz, we can't just stand here. There's no telling how long it's gonna be." Neal caught site of Peter, striding in their direction and wen to meet him half way. Mozzie was at his heals.

"How is she?' Neal asked when he was close enough for Peter to hear.

"Well, she is crying." Peter ignored Neal's mocking smile, knowing how uncomfortable crying made the agent.

"What? Crying? What did you do to her, Suit? She never cries," Mozzie asked, incensed at the idea of Red being hurt by anyone.

"Relax, Mozzie. I didn't do anything at all. Believe me, I wanted to because that kid is out of control and a good spanking would set her straight." He allowed a smile at the thought. "She wants to see you. She hit her head, and it's hurting. El is with her now, so come on. Neal, I talked with the nurses and only Mozzie is allowed to come back there, so wait for us here."

Leaving a sulking Neal behind, he led Mozzie to exam room three, only to find El waiting outside. "Honey, what are you doing out here? You were staying with the kid, remember?" Peter asked as he approached his wife.

"Oh. The nurses came back. They wanted to take her for an x-ray, and she was embarrassed to change in front of me." El giggled. "Apparently she didn't want me to see her Smurf underwear. They match her socks."

"Kid, you done changing?" Peter called out softly. He didn't want to make her cry again. He couldn't deal with crying kids. It made him uncomfortable.

When he received no answer, he pulled back the curtain only to find the room empty. "Damn! She's gone!"

Back in the waiting room, Neal was leafing through a magazine while exchanging flirting smiles with an attractive nurse. He rose, about to offer to get the pretty Blonde a coffee, when something outside the window caught his attention. It was a blur sliding past the window: a red one. Rushing to the window, he saw the little Red girl sliding down a drainage pipe like a fireman sliding down a pole in the fire station. All he could do was gape as she ended up on the roof of the out-going ambulance exit.

He held his breath as the kid expertly dropped on to the roof of an exiting ambulance. Still rooted to the spot in shock, the kid turned. She saw him through the window and smiled a bright toothy grin, raising both hands to show her favorite hand gesture. The ambulance zoomed off just as Peter, Mozzie and El came running out.

"She's on top of that ambulance," Neal said, pointing as Lilly dropped her hands and sat down on the quickly departing ambulance. A quick look at Peter confirmed the agent's fury, and also that something was amiss. Almost afraid to ask, he looked at his partner and asked softly, "Where is your gun, Peter?"

Peter saw his holster was empty and let out a gasp. "Dammit!"

The air whipped Lilly's hair wildly as she held on tight to the flashing lights on the vehicle's top. This was by far one of the best ideas she'd had in a while. Riding on the roof was fun.

When her ride began to slow abruptly at the next red light, she slid down to the street and hopped up on the sidewalk. Minutes later, she hailed a cab and was on her way.

Back at the hospital, Mozzie paced nervously, muttering something about the incompetence of the Suits, while he racked his brain, trying to figure out where Red could have gone.


	5. Chapter 5

Matthew Keller was seated in the back of a nondescript Sudan. It had been exactly two weeks to the day since he had escaped from prison, and he was starting to get impatient. Everyday he stayed in New York made the possibility of his capture more realistic. His problem with the Russian Mob had been solved. They wouldn't touch him now after the treasure was returned. Everything was in place for his exit strategy. He just had a little unfinished business that he needed to take care of before he could disappear.

"Give me some good news," he growled in to his phone, upon answering it.

Keller listens as the caller speaks briefly.

"That's interesting, too much to hope that at least one of them is dead," he muttered to the caller. "I know the place is crawling with Feds. You have the incentive to take a risk. Find out why they were there."

Closing his cell with a decisive snap, he nodded his head to the driver, and they started moving again. He had a meeting with an old associate tonight. If Mozzie had a hired gun looking for him, then his "associate" would deal with Mozzie and this "Red". It was just like Mozzie to hire a man with bigger balls than him to carry out the killing. Keller, on the other hand, took joy in the simple pleasures of taking a life. It was too bad his time table was limited or he would take out that bald headed pussy himself. He looked forward to seeing Burke and the Misses again and most of all Neal. With Caffery, he would take his time, make him watch as Burke and his wife died.

Lilly stepped out of the cab, slipped behind a parked car, and scanned her surroundings. She had to get her bag from Mozzie's loft. She doubted they would be watching already. They were doubtlessly still reeling from her amazing escape. Just to be on the safe side though, she took the alternative entrance via the fire escape. Making quick work of jimmying the window, she slipped inside with nothing but a change of clothes and some Aspirin on her mind. She didn't register that the lights were not working until a split second after she clicked the switch. This was not good. She was beginning to wish she hadn't watched Paranormal Activity 3 the night before as she heard a faint movement in the room. She saw a glint reflected off the streetlight on something metal further in the room and then heard a faint click. Ghosts didn't carry guns.

Lilly hit the ground as she whipped Peter's gun out from her waistband and thumbed off the safety. The bullet hit the wall a foot from where she had been standing. She couldn't hear anything over the loud rapport of the shot and her heart beating in her ears. She rolled and shot blindly in the direction the shot had come from. She missed her target, and soon another shot came soaring her way. Elbow crawling to the left, Lilly began to wish she had stayed at the hospital.

Peter had just stepped out of his car with Jones, Mozzie and Neal in tow. He was surprised how quickly Mozzie had given in and allowed them to actually know where he lived. He supposed it was a testament to how scared the little guy was for his friend.

Red's things were at Mozzies and they hoped that maybe a clue as to where she had gone would surface in searching through her stuff. They reached the door and, just as Mozzie inserted the key, gunshots rang out, startling them all.

"Stay here!" Peter ordered as he rushed past Neal and Mozzie with his backup gun drawn and Jones at his side. Bursting through the door, they came upon a chilling sight. A man stood, towering over what Peter assumed was the kid. Although it was dark inside, they could clearly make out both figures holding guns pointed at each other.

"Drop it! FBI!"

The man spun around in surprise at the words, and Jones fired, taking him down with a shot to the shoulder.

"You missed his head," the smaller shadow said, and they saw she had the gun up aiming.

"Hey!" Peter blurted out before doing the only thing he could think of in a moments notice. He tackled Red.

A groan from the much smaller person underneath him almost made him feel sorry for the girl. Almost. He picked up his gun, which she had dropped to the floor, and he stuffed it into his holster. He remained where he was, pinning the kid to the floor. His panic was now replaced by fury. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Get. Off. Me," came the muttered reply.

He snapped. Nothing fazed this kid. He could see it as he roughly jerked her from the floor and stood up himself. He was going to faze the kid alright. He had had enough of this. He walked towards the couch dragging the protesting Red with him. He could feel a slight tremor from her. Good. Now she was worried, and she should be. She began to jerk away, but he held on tightly. No way was she getting loose from his grip. He had some unfinished business with her, and they were going to have a little talk about her horrible behavior not to mention her stealing his gun.

A painful kick to his shin caused him to stop momentarily and land a stinging smack on the brat's backside.

"Son of Bitch!" she exclaimed then a muttered a threat. "I'm gonna beatcha up."

At that moment, someone tripped the breaker, and the lights came on. The sound of footsteps announced the arrival of Mozzie and Neal.

"Red!" Mozzie called, but Peter was not looking at them. Instead he was staring at the kid. The lights came on and he saw a look of terror on her face her eyes wide. It vanished in the blink of an eye and was replaced by a scowl. The bandage on her head was soaked in blood, and he hadn't realized he was gripping her injured arm. That too was bleeding, and he quickly let go of her, feeling guilty. As soon as she was released she backed up quickly and stepped behind the closest person to her, which happened to be Neal.

"I wanna go home," she said from behind Neal. Everyone looked her way but she was blocked by the consultant.

"You ok, Red?" Mozzie asked trying to get a look at her but she remained hidden behind a now smiling Neal.

The wounded man who by now was handcuffed despite the Gunshot. Jones had already radioed the EMT's for him. Looked towards the kid and laughed loudly.

"That's your hitman Mozzie?" The man laughed louder throwing his head back.

This brings a pissed Red out from behind Neal.

"I'll have you know I am not a man!" She was glaring and when he laughed again, she lost her temper and kicked him in the face.

Mozzie stepped up and gently pulled Red away.

"Come on kid lets get you fixed up and in some clean clothes." He leads her to the bathroom stopping to grab her bag and fish out some clothes.

Peter looks at Mozzie meeting his eyes for a moment.

"Fine keep an eye on her, we are headed to my office as soon as we get this sorted out." He looked up as the EMT's entered, then made a call to Hughes.


	6. Chapter 6

Lilly allowed Mozzie to lead her away. The adrenalin had worn of, and she was emotionally drained. Looking down, she noticed her hands were shaking. With a quick glance in Mozzie's direction, she knew he noticed too. She put her hands in her pockets to hide the trembling and stopped outside the bathroom door.

"Mozzie, I can change my clothes alone." Seeing his doubt, she knew he didn't trust her. "My God, Moz. There are no windows in there, so give me my stuff and back off. What has happened to you?" she snapped at him and gave him a disgusted look.

Mozzie looked at her in shock for a second. "You almost died, Red. You stole a federal agent's gun and broke into my house." The disapproving look he gave her stung.

"So says the felon!" Red sneered at him. "I have a key you moron, and I saved your life again, so how about a little fucking gratitude? That loser didn't follow me here, genius. He was waiting for you!" the kid poked him in the chest to make her point.

They now had an audience, though neither noticed Peter nor Neal listening at the end of the hall.

Shaking his head, Mozzie said what he felt needed to be said. "I don't need your help. You're just a kid. I don't need you. I have Neal and the Suit to help me. They have better things to do than chase a kid around. They need to protect themselves and find Keller. Not Babysit."

Peter, Neal, and Mozzie all saw the look of utter devastation cross the girl's face. She looked ready to burst into tears, and they all, no matter how much trouble she had been, felt bad for her.

In a blink of an eye, she had her walls up again with a careless look plastered on her face.

"I see. Well, I need to change and wash up. I'll leave the door unlocked." She rifled through her purse, pulled out a first aide kit, and slipped in the bathroom, leaving a stricken Mozzie behind.

Neal walked up and rested a comforting hand on his friends shoulder. "You did the right thing, Moz. Now she knows you don't need her to play hero for you anymore."

Peter began to get nervous. It had been almost 30 minutes, and Red had yet to come out from the bathroom. Using the paramedics as an excuse, he had them follow him to the bathroom. The shooter had already been taken away by ambulance, under Jones's close watch. Two ambulances had arrived, and he insisted that they check out Red. The shooter had refused to talk, and they had no idea yet who he was. The only certain thing was that he was a killer.

He dreaded facing the kid almost as much as his boss, Hughes, who was on his way there right at the moment to asses the situation in person. When Neal and Mozzie saw him approaching, they backed away to let him and the EMTs by.

"Red?" Peter called out, knocking softly in hopes that she wasn't scared of him. He just couldn't get the look of terror he saw on her face for that split second out of his mind.

"What, do you want?" came the reply from inside.

"I need to come in and have a look at you." Peter decided to not mention the medical personel with him.

"Door's open, Agent Burke," she snapped.

He pushed open the door to find Lilly carefully stitching her head up. She had fresh bandages on her arm, and she didn't bother to look his way.

"What are you doing? You should have a professional do that," he stepped forward, and she turned and looked at him with a stoic expression.

"I am a pro at this, the ER doctors are famous for making their stitching look like shades of Frankenstein." She was pleased when the medics look offended.

The agent stepped into the hall and returned alone after sending the EMTs away.

"Are you okay?" He looked the kid over, seeing if she had any injuries he may have missed earlier. She was pale and her hands were shaking, as much as she tried to hide it from him.

"Oh. I'm all kinds of wonderful. My motorcycle is totaled, I bashed my head on the ground, I was shot at, and Mozzie doesn't want to be my friend anymore. This day is just freaking fantastic." She sat down and pulled on her black motorcycle boots.

"We are gonna have to go back to my office to sort this out, and you are going." His tone left no room for argument.

"Fine." She rummaged through the medicine cabinet and took out a bottle of Vicodin, taking two before Peter could say anything. Beating him to the door, she marched out ahead of him and bumped in to a rather grumpy looking older man.

"Excuse you," she scowled at the man. He was staring at her and made her feel guilty for some reason. He looked from her boots to her jeans, and then finally at her shirt that said in bold letters 'Have you seen my Zombie?' He also didn't miss the bandage on her head or the ones on her arms.

"Hughes, this is Lilly." Red turned to give Burke the stink eye and was surprised when the old guy named Hughes began to laugh behind her. She quickly realized he wasn't laughing at her but at her shirt. The missing zombie was grinning on the back of her shirt.

"My name is Red," she told the older man. All at once, she began to feel woozy, and Hughes gently steadied her. Though she quickly shook him off.

"Burke, get this mess fixed, and then we can finish all the reports. I'll take Red here back to the office, so she can rest." And for once Lilly didn't argue, though she did roll her eyes at the "rest" comment. She would rather ride with anyone than with Agent Burke. She was fairly certain she could slip away from this older man anyway.

Peter motioned to Hughes, and the two stepped away to speak in private. Lilly watched them, intently reading their lips, a trick she had learned from her ex-friend, Mozzie. Burke was telling the older agent that she was capable of more than he knew and to keep eyes on her at all times.

Lilly rolled her eyes. Really, which one of the agents was the boss? A wicked grin spread across her face as she called over to them. "Agent Burke, is this the Senior Agent you were telling Neal about? The one who you said was way past retirement age and was getting a bit senile?" She blinked innocently at the look Burke gave her, but he said nothing.

Agent Hughes walked up and took her bag from her. He steered her towards the door with a hand on her shoulder. They reached the standard, ugly government-issued car and opened the passenger door for her.

"Get in," was all he said. When she hesitated, he gently pushed her inside and, much to her horror, buckled her seat belt and engaged the child-lock on the door.

Once he was settled in his seat, Lilly gave him her fiercest scowl. "I'd rather just go to my house. I'll call a cab." She pulled out her cell phone only to have it snatched, not so gently, from her hands. "Hey! Give it back. You don't have a warrant for my phone, asshole!" She ranted furiously.

"You done?" Hughes asked finally looking at her. "You're coming to the office. And watch your mouth." He said it all very calmly. She just barely kept herself from saying 'watch your face, I just might break it.'

After a few minutes of the silent treatment and glares from his passenger, Hughes looked and found that Lilly had fallen asleep. He smiled at how sweet the little terror looked while sleeping. He didn't have any children and was glad, even more so eying the redhead as she slept.

Sometime later, Lilly jolted awake by a car door closing. With a quick look around, she realized she was in the parking garage of the federal building. 'Oh great,' she thought to herself. She was hurting still, and her mood had plummeted to an even deeper level.

Agent Hughes opened her door and motioned for her to get out. "Out," he said. His lack of conversation was grating on her already frayed nerves. Then, seeing that he had a Happy Meal in his hand, she bristled and crossed her arms, shaking her head no. Though she secretly liked Happy Meals and wondered how this man could have possibly known that.

"You will get out of the car, Lilly. How you get out is up to you," Hughes said in that irritatingly calm tone again.

"The name is Red!" Lilly spat out at him as she gingerly exited the car. He didn't responded. He just grabbed her bag, slung it over his shoulder, and with the Happy Meal in one hand, he reached out and grabbed the kid's hand. A deep blush crept up her face as she saw his intention. He was going to hold her hand like she was a child.

Trying her best to pull away, he stood and watched her calmly, letting her figure out that he was much stronger than her. A frustrated groan told him that she had given up. She decided against kicking him. She was just too worn out to fight. Not to mention the security camera would catch her beating up a federal agent. Or so she told herself to keep up her brave, I-can-kick-anyone's-butt facade.

"Ready to go now?" he addressed his young charge. Receiving no answer, he led the way into the elevator.

As soon as they were clear of the elevator, Hughes felt a tug on his sleeve. Looking down he saw an exhausted expression on Lilly's face.

"What do you need?" he addressed her, still holding her hand firmly.

She muttered something he couldn't make out. He was a great deal taller than her. He leaned down a bit and asked, "Could you repeat that?"

"Um I need to use the restroom, please," She said just a bit louder.

"That's no problem." He looked around the bullpen, aware of the fact that everyone was looking at him holding a Happy Meal and a girl's hand. Although he knew that no one would dare make a wise crack about it to him.

Lilly smiled brightly, only to have it wilt when the senior agent said, "Diana, could you escort Red to the ladie's room." Receiving a nod, he added, "Then bring her to my office."

When the female agent was by their side, she frowned at the young woman. "No funny business."

She got no reply and after only a few steps, Lilly said in a loud chipper voice. "So Peter tells me you're a lesbian with a thing for redheads." A lie of course. Lilly had read the female agents lips while she was having a conversation on the phone, one with a woman who was obviously her girlfriend. Lilly could care less about who was a lesbian or who was gay, after all love is love. She was just being mean. She needed to go to the bathroom alone.

The entire bullpen was silent, and Hughes was making his way back to them. Diana just stood stock still, staring at Lilly. "So is Christie a redhead, or do you make her wear a wig?" Lilly looked warily at the agent. She looked pissed, and Lilly didn't want to have to beat the lady up. It was for that reason that she took a step back, not because she was scared.

No answer came forth, and Hughes had a tight grip in her hand again. "She can use my private bathroom." He marched Lilly up the stairs and into his office where he pointed to a closed door. He looked really pissed, so she retreated to the bathroom, turning on the water. She quickly made a few calls on her phone, which she had retrieved from Agent Hughes's pocket.

She flushed the toilet, washed her hands, and exited. She felt horrible about what she said earlier but couldn't think of any way to make it right. It had been such a long day and the nasty remarks she made to the actually nice female agent were just down right terrible. Considering all the things she had put the woman through, she looked at Hughes and saw a hint of anger in his eyes. Choosing to ignore it, she sat on the couch he indicated and took the Happy Meal from him. "Eat now!"

Thankfully, it was a chicken nugget meal, and she gobbled it down quickly, not noticing the smile on the man's face as he watched her in amusement. When his brother had come to visit with his wife and kids, he had learned from them that young ones would almost always eat chicken nuggets. They seemed to all be picky eaters. That proved to be the case with the teenager as well.

He would discuss the nasty remarks with Lilly after she got some rest. He didn't allow his agents to be disrespected, and certainly not by some smartass kid.

Hughes saw her shivering and retrieved a large FBI sweatshirt from his closet and handed it to her. Seeing her turn her nose up at it, he pulled it over her head quickly, and she put her arms through the sleeves, giving him yet another nasty look. It was at least several sizes bigger than her, making it a convenient blanket of sorts.

Several attempts to keep her eyes open finally failed, and she was soon asleep. When she finally fell asleep, he eased her slowly down on the couch until she was laying out flat. He removed her boots and then returned to his desk to work on some urgent paper work. He was glad nobody saw his gentle side. He had a stern reputation, which he intended on keeping. Respect was a must to run a whole FBI division. Respect was also something that Lilly needed to learn.

"What?" Peter shouted as Jones interrupted his interrogation of the shooter, who had so far only mocked every question asked.

He followed Jones out of the room. "What do you mean Red's lawyers are here?" he asked with anger in his voice. How could the girl have lawyers or the chance to even call anyone? She was, legally speaking, in protective custody, asleep on Hughes's couch with the man right in there with her.

Neal stepped out of Peter's office where he had been waiting with Mozzie, trying to calm his paranoid friend's fear that there were no mind reading scanners inserted over the doorways to read people's thoughts. Neal suspected Mozzie was really upset over Red and was redirecting it to the usual paranoia. He walked over to join Peter and Jones but froze as he saw two men down the stairs. He knew these men. They were lawyer's of the worst kind and handled almost exclusively people who were guilty as hell but had deep pockets. The tallest man was Sonny Garzo. He had been Vincent Adler's attorney and cohort.

Quickly covering the ground to Peter he nodded his head in the direction of the waiting men. "What are they doing here?"

Peter looked surprised at Neal. "You know them?"

Neal nodded. "The one in charge was on Vincent Adler's payroll."

Peter blew out an annoyed breath and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "That man is Red's attorney. How the hell does she even know him?"

"The day I met her " Mozzie said from behind the group, causing them all to turn around. "I was injured, and I strayed far from places of torture, like hospitals. They sedate you, and then you're in stranger's hands to do with you as they please. I also do not wish to be in the system."

All three men rolled their eyes. "Just get on with it, man," Neal said in exasperation.  
>++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++<p>

Hearing raised voices drew Agent Hughes's attention from his work. Two of his agents were standing a little ways from his office, having a heated conversation with the CI and his bald friend. A quick check of Red showed her to be sleeping still. Password locking his computer, he quietly slipped from the room to join them, locking his door behind him.

"She took me to an expensive high rise where she was staying. There was a doctor there who handled medical problems with discretion. He wrapped my ribs and checked me out, not asking for a dime. Red had her own penthouse there, a smaller one but still very expensive. Just as the doctor was finishing up, a well-dressed man walked in and spoke briefly with Lilly. It was that man," He indicated the same man Neal had been speaking of. "The other was Vincent Adler. He looked at me and said nothing about knowing me to Red. He did say something about her bringing strays home though." Mozzie frowned, remembering that insult. "She must have told him what happened because she handed the gun to him, and he laughed about it and patted her on the back." Mozzie shook his head as if he didn't approve.

"What was he doing there?" the senior suit barked at Mozzie. The little guy jumped, not realizing the senior suit had joined them.

"I don't know, but I suspect he owned the entire building, as well as Red's." The little guy shrugged.

"Was she " Hughes seemed to be unable to finish, but he didn't need to. Everyone understood what he meant and Agent Burke gasped audibly.

"No, no nothing like that. I think she was more of an amusement to him, like a pet. I asked her about him and all she would say was they were not related and that nosy people get black eyes." Moz laughed at that memory. Neal and Burke joined him.

Hughes just looked at them puzzled.

"She is violent," Neal explained.

"Well I could kick your ass for sure anyway," came a cocky voice behind Neal. There stood Red behind them, leaning casually against the wall, wearing a large FBI sweatshirt that came to her knees and no shoes, showing her rainbow colored socks.

They all spun around and stared at the defiant Red.

"Did I tell you that you could leave my office?" Hughes asked, towering over the girl.

Lilly crossed her arms and tilted her head to the side, looking up at him with a slight smile on her face. "Did I ask?" she replied

"My door was locked with a key." The senior suit leaned down and glared at Lilly.

She glared right back, a smirk on her face. "Sure you did. Or maybe you thought you did. You are getting along in the years."

Seeing something dangerous in senior suits eyes as he took a step towards her, she blurted out loud enough for the entire bullpen below to hear. "I see my lawyer is here." Looking down she yelled this time. "Hey, Sonny! I'm on my way down!"

The two men below both wore amused grins, and Sonny Garzo rolled his eyes nodding in Red's direction. 


End file.
